Shams Charania, ESPNDec 10, 2024, 02:00 PM
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During the NBA season and into the summer, Shams Charania's Inside Pass will tackle the news and transaction storylines that can shake up the league.
The NBA is entering an inflection point in the calendar. Teams have passed the 20-game mark, and team executives are conducting evaluations on their own rosters and players around the country as two critical dates approach.
On Sunday, Dec. 15, the majority of free agents who signed in the offseason are eligible to be traded. And then most general managers and team officials will descend upon the G League Winter Showcase in Orlando, Florida, from Dec. 19 to 22. Although most teams have already completed 20-game check-ins with their counterparts across the league, conversations typically heat up in January and closer to the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
Every trade deadline period, there are players who emerge as key figures to watch -- those who could shift the balance of power in the NBA. This season, all eyes will be on Miami Heat six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler and New Orleans Pelicans one-time All-Star Brandon Ingram.
Butler, 35, is one of the NBA's elite competitors and is a perennial postseason performer. His teams have made the playoffs in 12 of his first 13 seasons, including the five previous seasons in Miami, where he has led the Heat to two NBA Finals berths and one additional Eastern Conference finals appearance. Ingram is in his sixth year in New Orleans and has been the most consistent Pelican during that span, earning two postseason berths in the past three years.
Both Butler and Ingram are essentially in contract seasons. Ingram becomes an unrestricted free agent in July after his $36 million deal for this season expires. Butler has $49 million on his contract for this season -- with a $52 million player option for 2025-26. The sides did not reach an extension last summer.